title: Magnetoencephalography in the study of epilepsy and consciousness.
abstract: The neural bases of altered consciousness in patients with epilepsy during seizures and at rest have raised significant interest in the last decade. This exponential growth has been supported by the parallel development of techniques and methods to investigate brain function noninvasively with unprecedented spatial and temporal resolution. In this article, we review the contribution of magnetoencephalography to deconvolve the bioelectrical changes associated with impaired consciousness during seizures. We use data collected from a patient with refractory absence seizures to discuss how spike-wave discharges are associated with perturbations in optimal connectivity within and between brain regions and discuss indirect evidence to suggest that this phenomenon might explain the cognitive deficits experienced during prolonged 3/s spike-wave discharges.
authors.affiliation: School of Life and Health Sciences, Aston Brain Centre, Wellcome Trust Laboratory for MEG Studies, Aston University, Birmingham B4 7ET, UK.
authors.forename: Elaine
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Foley
authors.forename: Antonella
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Cerquiglini
authors.forename: Andrea
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Cavanna
authors.forename: Mable Angela
authors.initials: MA
authors.lastname: Nakubulwa
authors.forename: Paul Lawrence
authors.initials: PL
authors.lastname: Furlong
authors.forename: Caroline
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Witton
authors.forename: Stefano
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Seri
mesh_terms: D001921:Brain / Q000503:physiopathology*; D003243:Consciousness / Q000502:physiology*; D004569:Electroencephalography; D004827:Epilepsy / Q000503:physiopathology*; D006801:Humans; D015225:Magnetoencephalography
keywords: Absence seizures; Connectivity; Epilepsy; Magnetoencephalography; Phase lag index